


Island In The Sun [5 + 1]

by typicalaveragefangirl



Category: Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist (TV)
Genre: 5 + 1 Fic, Cruise Ships, F/M, Mutual Pining, Tumblr Prompt, innocent physical touch, innocent touch, pick two tropes, soft, vacation fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-10-25
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:47:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,476
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26001388
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/typicalaveragefangirl/pseuds/typicalaveragefangirl
Summary: Or, five times Clarkeman share an innocent physical touch on vacation and one time it isn't so innocent.This takes place pre-season 1 so no heartsongs / won’t necessarily align with canon. BUUUUUUT, I did listen to Island in the Sun by Weezer a lot while writing it, and named all the chapters after different lines in the song.
Relationships: Zoey Clarke & Max Richman
Comments: 60
Kudos: 29





	1. We'll Run Away Together

**Author's Note:**

> howdy, neighbors. I have not been inspired to write lately, but I found a pick-2 prompt list on tumblr and the lovely @chosenandloved gave me innocent physical touch & vacation. This was quite some time ago now, but I finally found it in me to write a little bit again and suddenly had allllllll the ideas, so I decided to make it a 5+1

Max knocked on Zoey’s door for the second time and was quiet, listening intently to see if he could hear Zoey’s footsteps approaching. They’d planned an all day movie marathon for Memorial Day since they had the day off from SPRQ Point. Normally he’d just walk right in after a quick knock, but for some reason the door was locked today so he patiently waited.

“Zoey?” he called out after another moment with no answer. A third knock. He pulled out his phone, ready to call her to see if she was out grabbing snacks or, the more likely option, had overslept when the door opened a sliver.

Zoey stood in an oversized sweatshirt, hood pulled tightly around her head. Max quickly noticed the dark circles beneath her puffy eyes. She surely hadn’t overslept; in fact, it looked like she hadn’t slept at all. He wasn’t used to seeing his best friend look so defeated and it put an instant knot in his stomach. She opened the door a little wider, but stood still in the door of her dark apartment rather than invite him in.

“Hi, Max. Could we maybe reschedule our movie marathon?”

Max had been looking forward to their marathon for weeks. He’d finally convinced Zoey, who normally wasn’t a huge fan of horror movies, to watch Evil Dead with him as long as he watched Nat Geo’s Journey to the Edge of the Universe with her. He wasn’t about to admit to Zoey he had thought the documentary looked good and lose his bargaining power for Evil Dead, however.

Either way, watching the cute lead actress and her friends summon demons in Evil Dead and learning all about the even more terrifying realities of Black Holes could wait. _There was clearly something wrong here_. Instead of answering her question, he countered with one of his own.

“Are you okay?”

“Ah, yeah,” Zoey said, waving her hand haphazardly. It would have been more convincing if the sweatshirt sleeve hadn’t fallen down past her wrists—revealing only the very tips of her fingers as she waved. When Max raised his eyebrows and gave her a soft smile that said ‘we both know I know you better than that,’ Zoey reluctantly continued, “Uh, well, Aaron broke up with me.”

Max’s first instinct was to reach forward and pull her into his arms in comfort, but decided against it for some reason. “I’m sorry, Zo,” he offered instead.

She turned without a word in response, stepping into her apartment and ushering Max in behind her before curling up in a little ball on the couch. It was clear that she was trying not to cry. Max sat down, angling his body toward hers and resting his arm along the backrest.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“I don’t know,” she admitted. The tears threatened to spill over her eyes, but Zoey was actively working to avoid that. Max had never known Zoey to get this upset about a breakup; despite his general indifference regarding each of her _objectively disastrous_ relationships over the past three years he’d known her, the pain Aaron had caused his best friend turned the knot in Max’s stomach to something resembling fire.

He remained quiet, though, waiting to take his cues on the way the conversation should go from Zoey herself. Should he offer to burn the sweatshirt—which he now recognized must be He Who Must Not Be Named’s—she was wearing? Should he try to distract her with funny anecdotes from his own disastrous love life? Should they get day drunk so she can wallow in the feelings?

“I just… really thought this time was different,” Zoey sighed finally. “Did I ever tell you what I had bought him for his birthday next weekend?”

Max shook his head and she continued.

“I bought him a suitcase. And I was going to put tickets I’d bought for a weeklong cruise in there so that he’d open it and think I just got him a suitcase for a second but then when he'd open that he'd realize the real, romantic gift was the cruise. But I was a dumbass and realized the tickets were only on my phone, so I went to the trouble of asking Allie in design to make mock tickets that I could print out. For a cruise. In six months. I bought nonrefundable tickets to go on a cruise in six months. Only for him to go and dump me before I even had the chance to give it to him.”

“That’s not dumb! If anything I think that shows how much you’ve grown! You opened up your heart to him. You didn't do that with what's his name—Jordan? Jason?”

“Yeah, and look how great that worked out for me! I guess I’ll just see if David and Emily want the tickets or something.”

“Nope!” Max said, deciding on his plan of action had to involve a combination of his earlier approaches. He jumped up from the couch and threw open the shades letting sunlight into the otherwise nearly dark apartment, and grabbed a bottle of wine off Zoey’s bar cart.

“First thing is first. You’re going to take that sweatshirt off, gather anything else the asshat left here, and you’re going to throw it all directly into the garbage. Then you’re going to drink this wine and wallow while you watch a movie with your best friend. And then tomorrow, you’ll return that luggage and buy yourself a nice new dress or swimsuit or whatever else you want to wear when you go on your cruise. Zoey Clarke isn’t the type of woman to let somebody with a name like Aaron stop her from having fun.”

_Burn the sweatshirt? Check. (Sort of.)_

He crossed to where she was sitting with two glasses of wine in hand. “Besides, I’ve never met anybody named Aaron I liked. We should’ve known from the start he was trouble. Just like Clair was.”

_Make fun of his own failed love life? Check._

Zoey stared at him incredulously, but the faint smile toying on the edge of her lips showed him he’d made the right call on his cheering up methods. She made a grab for one of the glasses in his hand, but Max held it just out of her reach and said, “I wasn’t kidding about that sweatshirt. You don’t get the wine until it’s in the trash can.”

“You really think withholding _my own wine_ from me is the way to go here?”

He shrugged.

“It’s the way I’m going.”

She begrudgingly pulled the sweatshirt over her head, leaving her in her favorite NASA t-shirt and a pair of polka dotted pajama shorts that had been almost completely covered by the sweatshirt. Zoey slowly walked to the kitchen and dropped the shirt into the trash before returning to Max and holding out her hand until he’d handed the glass of wine over.

_Get drunk and wallow in feelings? Check._

“Doesn’t that feel nice? Now you deserve this break up wine!”

“I honestly feel a little guilty. Shouldn’t we have donated it or something?”

“I’ll make a donation to the Bay Area Rescue Mission in his name tomorrow.”

They settled into the couch and Max put the Nat Geo documentary on first, knowing Zoey needed more cheering up before facing the horror film. His plan worked perfectly, and by the end of Journey to the Edge of the Universe he could hardly remember that she’d been in a bad mood when he had arrived. The pair took a break to grab lunch before re-closing the shades, turning out the lamp, and watching Evil Dead in as much darkness as mid-afternoon allowed.

With the exception of a few small squeals and hands flying over her eyes, Zoey watched the movie with valor. As much as Max loved watching the movie, he realized he loved watching her watch it even more. During a particularly gory part at the end of the movie, though, Zoey decided she’d had enough. Max’s arm had repositioned itself on the back of the couch, subconsciously—or maybe consciously—liking how his hand was occasionally brushed by her curls when she flinched.

His position left the perfect opening for a disgusted Zoey to fall into him. As the chainsaw came down and screams erupted on screen, she let out a small scream of her own and quickly buried her head in his chest. Zoey curled into Max and brought her hands up to cover her face even more.

Her sudden movement, _her sudden movement into him_ , startled Max more than the movie had. It shouldn’t have. It’s not like they hadn’t shared plenty of hugs, offered each other plenty of playful punches during their trademarked best friend bickerings. If he was being honest with himself, Max knew most movie nights involved one of them leaning too far over their own couch cushion. But this specific gesture—innocent as it was—made his breath catch in his throat. His arm, as if it had a mind of his own, moved around her side and held her tightly against him.

Zoey spent the last several minutes of the movie there, face flush against his sweater only occasionally peeking out of spaces in her fingers. Max spent the last several minutes of the movie wondering why it was so hard for him to focus on something as mundane as breathing. Unwilling or unable to admit why, all Max knew was that he didn’t want to let his best friend out of his arms.

“Max?” she said as the screen faded to black. Her voice was barely above a whisper, and her head slowly tilted up toward his, though her hands still curled were still curled around her face. Neither of them made any effort to separate from each other. He had absolutely no idea what to expect.

“Yeah?”

“Will you go on the cruise with me?”

“Sure, Zo,” he said, chuckling softly. “I’ll go on the cruise with you.”

“Thank you, Max.”

“You’re welcome.”

“No—I mean, uh, thanks for…”

“I know. You’re welcome.”


	2. When You're On A Holiday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's cruise time, baby!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back, back again! Sorry it took so long to update between chapters 1 & 2\. Hopefully I'll get back into the swing of things with this story this weekend. :)

“Are you sure you don’t want them?” Maggie asked Zoey, holding up a pair of inflatable life vests her parents bought  _ years _ ago when they took a small sailboat down the coast of California.

“I am pretty sure the cruise line will have plenty of life jackets on board, Mom,” Zoey repeated for what felt like the hundredth time. She gave her mom the nicest smile she could muster. “But thank you, it’s a very sweet gesture.” 

“What if you hit an iceberg!” Maggie countered, funneling all of her anxieties about Zoey going on a cruise ship—Leonardo DeCaprio had always been one of her favorite actors, and she still hadn’t forgiven The Titanic for the emotional turmoil it had caused her—into illogical problems. 

“ _Mom,_ _we’re going to Hawaii._ ” 

It was far, far too early to have this discussion. 

“Fine, don’t take them. But I don’t want to hear it when you have to explain to Mr. and Mrs. Richman why there wasn’t room for Max on the door with you!”

At that point there was a knock on the door, so Zoey was spared having to answer. When she opened it to a smiling Max, she greeted him with, “I hope you have your will in order!” 

The quizzical contortions Max’s face made had Zoey laughing instantly, but her breath involuntarily caught when she actually got a good look at him. Max looked  _ good _ .  _ Real good. _ His hair was getting a little longer than normal and therefore curling more—said curls escaping around a backwards baseball cap.  _ Focus, Zoey _ . 

She did focus... on him. He was wearing a pair of linen shorts and a floral button up polo with the top several buttons were left undone. Zoey’s eyes trailed down from his eyes, where they’d originally landed, to a golden chain necklace, and then to Max’s dark chest hair escaping the unbuttoned top.  _ How had she never seen Max shirtless? How did seeing Max shirtless jump into her #1 most wanted list so quickly? _

“Are you… planning to throw me overboard?”

“Ignore her, Max,” Maggie said, walking up as the pair stepped inside. “She just refuses to take the life jackets I offered for you.” 

Max offered Maggie the same fake smile that he did when Leif or Tobin said something absurd at work and he couldn’t actually speak his mind. Zoey had to stop herself from laughing out loud, knowing her mom thought it was just Max being a sweetheart. 

“I think they have life jackets on board for us!” is all he said. 

“And there’s my boy!” Maggie said, and Max set down the carrying kennel for his cat, Oliver, and pulled him out. Maggie had clearly been talking about Oliver, but she gave Max a hug before reaching over and pulling the cat into her own arms. 

“Thank you again for watching him!” Max said, this time the accompanying smile completely earnest. “I’ve left him alone for a few days at a time but I don’t think he’d like me too much if I left him alone for a week.” 

“It is absolutely no problem!” Mitch said, coming in from the back yard and giving Oliver’s head a quick pet after he took off his gardening gloves. “You guys all packed up and ready to go?” 

Max settled Oliver into the Clarke’s house, giving Maggie and Mitch a run down on all of the things he’d brought—primarily his litter box, food, and a scratching post so Oliver didn’t ruin Mitch’s favorite chair. Max was still traumatized from the day he’d spilled his soda on the chair; he’d never seen Maggie so mad at him. Then they loaded their suitcases into the car and Mitch drove Max and Zoey to the port the cruise was leaving from. 

The cruise would span seven days; the first three en route to Hawaii, spending that night and the entire next day on the big island, and then heading back to San Francisco. Zoey and Max were sharing the smallest, cheapest room, complete with two small  _ supposedly _ twin sized beds, an even smaller bathroom, and just enough room to walk single file between the two spaces. 

Zoey and Max made easy conversation as they went through the ticket line. 

“So we could either go snorkeling, on a hike, go to a waterpark, spend the day at the beach, or spend the day at a bar,” Zoey said, reading through some of the excursion options for their day in Hawaii. 

“How about a hike!”

“Sure, that sounds great! It ends at a waterfall.”

“Wait…” Max said slowly, a lopsided grin on his face. “Did Zoey Clarke just  _ voluntarily _ agree to go on a hike with me? I just assumed we’d spend time at the beach and/or the bar. But I wanted to see you squirm for a second.” 

“I’m trying to,” Zoey trailed off, waving her hands in the air wildly. “I don’t know. I’m trying to embrace life—have a certain joie de vivre. Embrace this cruise, so I don’t have to think too much about why I’m on this cruise. Alone.”

“Hey, you’re not alone!” Max said, nudging her with his elbow as they continued up toward the entrance of the ship. 

She smiled at him. She knew he was right. She wasn’t alone. And that was a big part of what she didn’t want to think about. Sure, on the surface she didn’t want to think about the fact that her boyfriend had broken up with her before she’d gotten a chance to give him his cruise ticket. But more than that, she didn’t want to think about her replacement cruise companion.

Following her breakup with Aaron, Zoey leaned into her friendship with Max more than ever. They’d always been close and they’d always spent a lot of time together, but everything they’d always done had amplified exponentially during the last six months. They often had more than one movie night a week; they hardly went a weekend without some plan or another. 

_ Which had absolutely started to terrify her _ . Not the spending time with Max—that part she loved, which is why she continued to do it. But the part of her who realized how broken she’d felt when Aaron dumped her and the part that  _ knew without a doubt _ that if she lost Max the pain would go so far beyond what she’d felt that night it wouldn’t be visible in Aaron’s rearview mirror. 

“And Zo?” Max said, pulling her out of her thoughts about losing Max and back into the reality of standing next to him in the line. 

“Hmm?”

“We’re not really joie de vivre people.” 

Zoey let out an airy laugh. “You’re right,” she admitted happily. The two eventually approached the ticket counter. Zoey handed her phone over with the tickets pulled up and the worker scanned them both before beginning to type on the computer. 

“Hmmm,” she said, scratching her head. “It looks like the two of you were mistakenly put in a two twin bed room rather than the single full size bed.” She continued typing, and then continued “Let me just see if I can find you a different option!” 

“Oh, we’re not… uh, we—” Zoey said, fumbling her words. She felt her cheeks turn the color of her hair. 

“The two beds are fine,” Max added with a charming smile, seemingly unphased. 

The worker made a pained smile. “Sorry,” she said sheepishly. “I just… you guys, uh, just looked really cute in line. Anyway, here are your wristbands!” She handed them each a wristband with 2896 printed on it. She explained that the wristbands were their room key and could be scanned for access to all of the drinks, meals, and shows that came with their tickets. 

“They also will be how you access all the photos that are available for purchase. We have cameras set up at several locations on the ship, so if you want to buy any of those just go to any of the printers on board, scan your wristband, and it will pull up all the photos of the two of you to print or send to your email!” 

After a few more formalities Zoey and Max were on the ship and weaving their way through the long hotel-esque hallways to find their way to room 2896. They walked in, a small bathroom to a door immediately on their right and a spot for their suitcases on the left. A few steps later, the two tiny beds started—a couple feet between the two with a bedside table and lamp against the far wall of the room separating them. 

Zoey and Max settled into the room as best two people could settle into a room that was about the same size as the walk-in closet in Max’s apartment. 

“Should we head up to the deck and check things out?” Max asked. 

“Let's do it!” 

The ship was exquisite; people were still boarding, so they were still docked at the port, but even the views of the ocean from there were incredible. There were a few waterslides and multiple pools and lounging chairs all around. There was a small minigolf course and a few basketball hoops. There were more bars than Zoey could count. The pair walked up to the first they saw, Zoey ordering a margarita on the rocks and Max a piña colada. 

They continued their tour around the main deck with drinks in hand when a photographer stopped them. “Welcome to the ship! Would you like a commemorative photo? They’re great for Christmas cards or holiday engagement announcements.” 

Zoey felt herself blush again, but was extremely glad it was Max who was being mistaken for her  _ fiance _ instead of Aaron. Max and Zoey shared a quick look, stepping a little closer to each other as they smiled at the camera. 

“Go on!” the photographer said as he snapped the first shot, “act like you like each other!” 

Max stepped closer yet to Zoey and caught her by surprise when he put his hand on the small of her back, bringing her into his side. Her sundress was thin, so she felt the heat of each of his fingertips sending five jolts of lightening up her back and straight to her head. 

The action was  _ so innocent _ , but Zoey could hardly function.  _ How was a gesture so simplistic making her brain so foggy? What else he could do with his fingers?  _ She stole a glance up at Max before turning her attention back to the camera and giving the photographer her best smile—knowing it’d be a miracle if her lust wasn’t written all over the photograph. 

“Perfect! Got a few options for the two of you to choose from. What’s your room number?”

“2896” 

He punched the number into the camera and walked away with a final nod of his head and an “enjoy your trip!” 

If this morning was any indication, it was going to be a  _ long _ week.


	3. As We Drift Into The Zone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Zoey Clarke, I really cannot let you walk around this ship barefoot, and if you are not going to walk around this ship with your own shoes on, this is our only option—unless you prefer I carry you in my arms like a princess.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back, back again. And going to stop giving any expectations that I will write the next chapter quickly.

“Morning, sleepyhead,” Max said when Zoey opened her eyes. 

They were both laying on their sides on the identical beds, facing each other. Zoey gave him a soft smile before a yawn escaped. 

“Good morning. What time is it?” 

Max glanced at the small alarm clock on the bedside table between them. “Just after ten,” he said. “I just woke up a few minutes ago.” 

He didn’t add that when he’d awoke, he’d spent those few minutes watching her sleep—he knew enough to know that sounded  _ creepy _ . But when he opened his own eyes, she was right in his line of sight and he was caught by how beautiful she looked, smudged eye makeup and baggy t-shirt and all. 

“It’s still so dark in here,” Zoey said, pushing herself onto her elbow after a stretch. They had a room on the edge of the ship, so a bit of light was entering the room from the small circular window, but not much. “I don’t even remember the last time I slept this late. We shouldn’t be wasting the whole vacation away with sleep!” 

Max watched as she sat completely up and then took the few steps to her suitcase. He leaned over and turned on the lamp but stayed in bed—they’d quickly figured out the room was much easier to navigate if one of them was tucked away on a mattress. 

“You work hard,” he said. “You deserve to sleep in once or twice a year and we both know you won’t do that at home.” 

Zoey flashed a breathtaking smile his way.  _ God, it was going to be a looooong week. _ Max had agreed to come on this cruise without hesitation, knowing it’d be fun to get away with Zoey for a few days. And he still thought it would be fun. But during the last six months, Max had pretty much come to terms with the fact that he was one hundred percent, without a doubt in love with his best friend. And that made this trip… complicated. 

“Mind if I take a quick shower?” she asked, pulling Max back into reality. The two of them had spent a lot of time together over the last several years, but they’d never lived in such close quarters. Max wouldn’t necessarily call it awkward, but it definitely left room for some new encounters—which were few and far between at this point of their friendship. 

“Take your time!” he said, trying and failing to take his mind off the fact that Zoey was getting into the shower just a few feet away from him. He decided to take the opportunity to get ready for the day himself: dressing in a pair of floral swimming trunks, a Golden State Warriors tank top his brother had sent him when he moved to San Francisco and had yet to find an appropriate moment to wear, and his backward baseball hat to help control the second-day curls. 

Twenty minutes later, Zoey emerged from the bathroom dressed in a pair of high waisted denim shorts and a black swimsuit top. “Love the shirt, Max!”

He hoped the smile that appeared on his face said ‘I am a normal human man accepting a compliment from a normal human woman’ and not ‘why, thank you sweet love of my life shall we make love now or later?’ 

“Thanks! You know I don’t get too into basketball much, but Lee sent it to me as a San Francisco warming present.” 

The pair finished getting ready and decided to head to brunch, both ordering waffles and mimosas and making easy conversation as they ate. Today would be spent entirely on the open ocean, and they had no real plans but to eat, drink, and try to apply enough sunscreen to save Zoey’s porcelain skin from third degree burns.

“I saw on the brochure in our room that there’s an Earth, Wind & Fire tribute band show tonight!” Max said excitedly. “We should definitely go check it out after dinner.” 

“What is Earth, Wind & Fire?” 

_ “Did you really just ask me who Earth, Wind & Fire is?” _ He knew Zoey opted for podcasts over music most days, but even Max himself had had multiple conversations with Mitch and Maggie about 70s and 80s music. She shouldn’t be  _ this _ clueless. 

“Should I know…uh, them?” 

“DO YOU REMEMBAH?” Max started singing—a little too loud for Zoey’s comfort—and shimmying his shoulders back and forth in response, “THE TWENTY FIRST NIGHT OF SEPTEMBAH.” Zoey laughed at him, clearly equal parts entertained and embarrassed. When she didn’t seem to recognize September, Max tried another option. “Dance! BOoGiE WoNdErLaAaNnNdD” 

Zoey shrugged her shoulders. “Maybe I’ve heard my dad play that a time or two.” 

Max wasn’t convinced she actually recognized either song, but rather that she wanted him to stop singing. 

“Well that settles it. I’ll introduce you to their genius at the show tonight,” he said. 

“It’s a date.” 

_ It’s a date? Was this whole cruise a date? Did Zoey… no, she couldn’t. She wouldn’t. She… Breathe, Richman. Breathe.  _

“Max?” 

He shook out his head, focusing his eyes back on her. 

“I was, uh, just kidding,” she said, nervously chewing the inside of her cheek. “No need to spiral. It was just a term more than anything.” 

“Right,” he said, offering a small smile and thankful for the slight sunburn he’d gotten on his cheeks yesterday. Hopefully it was covering the blush he knew was there. Their brunch had long been gone, so Max pushed away from the table. “Well, should we go explore more?” 

“Let’s do it!” 

Zoey was going to be the death of him. 

* * *

Max and Zoey found two lounge chairs near one of the pools on the top deck of the ship and spent the entire afternoon alternating between sipping on their drinks, taking naps in the hot sun, and jumping in the pool when it got too warm. 

Once early evening hit, they went back to their room to get ready for their dinner reservation. Max, covered in salt, sunscreen, and sweat from their afternoon, jumped in the shower and then spent more time than it should’ve taken trying to get his damp body dressed in the tiny bathroom. 

When he walked into the main part of their room dressed in a simple pair of khaki shorts and a navy patterned button down, he stopped in his tracks. Zoey looked  _ perfect _ . She wore a rose gold, low cut romper that hugged her small frame more tightly than any of her normal sweaters did and  _ dear, God, she looked perfect. _

He tried to put a friendly smile on his face, hoping he’d recovered enough when her eyes finally met his. “Is that the outfit you bought when you returned He Who Must Not Be Named’s luggage?” he asked, hoping she was ready for the joking tone his voice took on. 

“Nope,” she said, shaking her head with a chuckle. “I got a different dress with that. I originally bought this for Emily’s bachelorette party before her Maid of Honor told me we were all supposed to wear black.” 

Zoey took over the bathroom, leaving the door open as she quickly put her hair up in a classy, curly ponytail and added a touch of eye makeup to her previously bare face. As they headed to dinner, Max noticed she had more freckles than normal peppering her skin. 

After a nice meal, a few glasses of wine, and plenty of key lime pie for dessert, Zoey and Max left the restaurant and started heading towards the ballroom where the Earth, Wind & Fire show was set to start in about half an hour.  Zoey paused as they walked, putting her hand on Max’s shoulder to steady herself as she started taking her high heels off. 

“You good, Zo?” 

“Yeah, my feet just hurt,” she answered. “I was not made to wear heels all night.” 

She picked up the shoes in one hand and continued walking. 

“You can’t walk on a cruise ship with bare feet!” Max nearly shrieked. “You’ll get some deadly disease!” 

“I can get a tetanus shot,” Zoey said, “I can’t amputate both of my feet.” 

She kept walking; Max would’ve laughed if he wasn’t frozen in confusion. He couldn’t believe _Zoey of all people_ was walking around barefoot in a place that wasn’t exactly known for its cleanliness. She looked back at him, still standing where she’d stopped to take off her shoes. 

“I’d prefer we didn’t have to do either,” he said.  Max jogged up to where Zoey had stopped waiting for him and turned around, crouching down.  “C’mon, I’ll give you a piggyback ride!” 

“Really, Max, it’s fine I-”

“Zoey Clarke, I really cannot let you walk around this ship barefoot, and if you are not going to walk around this ship with your own shoes on, this is our only option—unless you prefer I carry you in my arms like a princess.” 

A couple who appeared to be in their 70s or 80s walked by at this point and the woman gave Zoey a big grin. “Listen to your man,” she said. “Some day he won’t be able to carry you anymore and you’ll be happy to look back on this very moment.” 

Max felt himself blush again, but couldn’t help but take a glance back at Zoey; she grinned back down at him, blush across her cheeks too, for a split second before groaning and jumping onto his back. He straightened, wrapping his arms tightly around the back of her knees and started back on their path. Max tried to ignore all of the things he was feeling: the laugh Zoey gave the couple when the man said “what do you mean i’m not able to carry you like that anymore, jump on, darling,”; each breath she took as he continued walking; every  _ single _ inch of her body curled around him. 

A piggyback ride was  _ so damn  _ innocent. It was the ride of choice for children, for fucks sake. He hadn’t thought anything beyond “I have to get her feet off the ground” when he offered his back taxi service, but even if he had thought about it, Max would never have guessed what this damn piggyback would do to him. It should have been so innocent, but it sure didn’t feel that way now. 

After what felt like hours of trying to focus on anything— _ seriously, anything _ —other than the woman holding tightly to his back, Max made it to the ballroom. He sat both Zoey and then himself down at a small table on the edge of the dance floor. The performers came out dressed in sequins and brightly flowing fabrics from head to toe not long after and began the night with Boogie Wonderland. 

Passengers quickly flocked to the dance floor, but Max and Zoey remained seated for the first several songs; if he was being honest, Max wanted to get out there, but there was no way he’d ask Zoey to put her shoes back on just to satisfy his own selfish dreams. 

“You want to dance?” Zoey asked Max a few songs later; it was the first slow song of the night—After The Love Has Gone. “I’ll even put my shoes back on for you.” 

Max stood, holding his hand out rather than say anything. Zoey slid her feet back into her heels, standing and grabbing Max’s hand. He led her out to the dance floor, her other hand settling on his shoulder as they started a simple waltz. Zoey rested her head against Max’s shoulder as they continued drifting into each other, dancing the night away. 


	4. We'll Be Playing & Having Fun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zoey & Max spend their day in Hawaii.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I still exist! This fic will be finished! Eventually! Life is just hard™! 
> 
> Thanks for sticking with me :)

They stepped off the boat and Zoey couldn’t help but smile. The sun was shining in her eyes, Max was by her side, and as far as she was concerned it was going to be the  _ best _ day no matter what ended up happening. 

“Aloha e aloha e,” Max sang, “‘Ano ‘ai ke aloha e.”

Zoey stopped in her tracks. It was two simple phrases, but she was struck by how great Max’s voice was. And then a moment later she was struck by how weird it was that he was singing. Was he really singing? She couldn’t grasp the fact that somebody would just break out in song for the hell of it—maybe she was hearing things. He repeated the two lines again.  _ Okay, she definitely wasn’t hearing things. _

“Uh, Max buddy? Are you  _ singing _ ?”

Rather than answer with his words, Max continued singing. This time even louder. “There is no place I’d rather be than on my surfboard out at sea,” he sang in a strong, clear voice. “Lingering in the ocean blue and if I had one wish come true I’d surf till the sun sets beyond the horizon.”

“We can… um… I’m sure we can find a place to get you some surfing lessons?” Zoey tried. He hadn’t answered her when she’d tried to talk to him about the fact that he was singing; maybe if she indulged him he’d stop singing. She was pretty sure people were watching.

It didn’t work. 

“A wiki wiki mai lohi lohi,” Max sang. “Lawe mai I ko papa he’e nalu.” 

Zoey was starting to think she was losing her marbles. She tried to live her life in a way that didn’t bring the eyes of every stranger to her; Max wouldn’t actually break out into song and dance as they walked up the dock on purpose, right? 

“Flying by on the Hawaiian roller coaster riiiiide,” he sang. He paused for a moment and then looked back at her and said, “what, is my voice that terrible? It’s been years since my summer camp voice lessons, but I thought I did alright.” 

“Max, why in the ever living hell were you singing that song? Out loud? In public?”

“Haven’t you ever seen Lilo and Stitch?” he asked, shrugging. “It was one of my favorite movies as a kid! I couldn’t very well come all the way to Hawaii and  _ not _ sing it now could I?” 

Zoey just laughed. She couldn’t do anything but laugh. 

“Well, thanks for the private concert, I guess.” 

“You are so very welcome.” 

* * *

The ship had arrived at the dock pretty late last night leaving Zoey and Max a few hours to start exploring the island; they’d gone to a bar and had a few drinks on the patio while they watched locals perform a fire show on the beach. 

Max and Zoey had spent quite a bit of time going back and forth on what excursions they wanted to do, and in the end they decided to actually go on the hike they’d talked about in line to board the ship. It was only a few miles out to the waterfall, so hopefully they’d finish it with enough time to spend a few hours swimming in the ocean before they had to reboard the ship at 6 o’clock to head back to California. 

The hike was technically only considered “moderate” difficulty but Zoey was still slightly concerned considering the last time she could remember exercising was the week Joan had been mad at her and she’d opted to take the stairs to the fourth floor rather than risk being stuck alone in an elevator with her boss. Luckily, her time so far with Max on the cruise had revealed that he was secret buff, so on the not-so-off chance that she was a klutz and something happened he’d be able to give her a piggyback ride back to safety. 

If she would survive a second piggyback ride was another question, but she’d cross that bridge when and if they got there. 

They followed the map they’d taken from the cruise’s excursions pamphlet, and made their way to the trailhead. 

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Max asked. “I really was kidding when I brought it up that first day.”

“Might as well! We’ve got all day.” 

The hike started out relatively easy—a slight incline, but nothing too crazy. Max and Zoey hiked side by side when the path was wide enough and Zoey took the lead in the places it got narrow. They made easy conversation as they went. As they went the hike got harder, the conversations got fewer and further between. 

Zoey was determined to keep going, but after a mile of straight incline she eventually moved to the edge of the path and stopped. “You can… keep… going,” she said as she struggled to catch her breath. 

“Are you kidding?” Max said, trying to laugh but really just sounding more like a dying animal. After he took a few deep breaths he continued, “I think if you’d kept going for a minute longer I would’ve just fallen over and rolled all the way back down that entire hill.” 

The two of them stood there for a few more minutes waiting for their heart rates to return to something resembling normal before continuing on. After a few more minutes, Zoey said, “We’ve got to be getting close to the waterfall, right?” 

“Yeah, I think it was a little more than three miles from the trailhead,” Max said. “So we’ve got to be getting close.” 

Ten more minutes passed. 

And then ten more. 

“You’ve gotta be kidding me!” Zoey said, exasperated. “We seriously haven’t gone 3 measly miles yet?” 

“We’ve gotta be getting close!” Max said, trying to stay positive.

“We said that same thing twenty minutes ago!” 

After another ten minutes passed they finally turned a corner and the waterfall appeared. 

“Holy shit.” 

“Yeah. Holy shit is right.” 

They both stood still for a moment, just admiring the view in front of them before getting interrupted by another small group coming up behind them on the path. “Excuse me!” their leader said. 

Max and Zoey stepped aside to let them pass, and then decided to find a spot near the small lake that had formed at the bottom of the waterfall. They sat next to each other and were quiet as they looked around. Max and Zoey never ran out of things to say to each other, but there was a profound sense of comfort in their ability to also just  _ be _ with each other, too. Nothing had to be said for them to each know what the other was thinking. 

After they recovered from their hike to the waterfall and explored a little bit, Max and Zoey headed back to the path and started the venture back. 

“Hey, at least downhill has to be easier, right?”

* * *

When they finished their hike, Zoey and Max enjoyed a well deserved meal together. After a quick breakfast on the ship and a hike that took longer than expected, a normal lunch time had passed, but they found a little restaurant just off the main street that was still open; they ordered way too many different meals and tried a little bit too much of each one, stuffing themselves full before heading to the beach where they planned to spend the rest of the afternoon. 

They grabbed a few towels from the cruise line’s beach shack and spent the entire afternoon sunbathing, applying and reapplying sunscreen, and wading out into the waves. 

It was almost time to head back to the ship when Max said, “c’mon, Zo, let's go for one more quick swim.” 

She joined him in the water, flinching away as he dove under and kicked water in her general direction as he swam out further than they had earlier. 

“Zoey Clarke, come actually swim with me!” 

“What if a shark attacks me, Max?” 

“I promise I will ask it to bite me first,” he said, pleading. “How often is it you get to swim through five feet of water so clear you can see your feet in the beautiful white sand?” 

Zoey reluctantly waded out further into the water, diving under after a little more persuading. They spent some time swimming back and forth in the water, and Zoey had to admit that she was glad they’d done it. She was glad until she emerged from the water the last time and Max’s eyes got wide. 

“What?!” she shrieked. 

Max swam over to her and said, “it’s okay! You just have some seaweed in your hair.” He was clearly trying not to laugh. “Do you want me to, uh…” 

“Get it! Max—get it  _ right now _ .” 

Max reached his hand up, picking each piece of seaweed out of Zoey’s hair and flinging it back into the ocean. His fingers lingered by her temple and she watched his Adam's apple as he swallowed. Max had never run his fingers through her hair before; an action so innocent, especially one he was only doing because she’d freaked out about a little algae, shouldn’t have turned her on so much. But it did. And suddenly she needed to run her fingers through his hair, too. 

Zoey looked up to Max’s eyes, and he looked back down at her. She almost thought she felt him leaning down to kiss her when the alarm on the cruise ship started blaring. “ _ Attention Majesty of the Seas passengers. This is your ten minute loading warning. Repeat: Ten minutes to boarding. _ ” 

They frantically pulled away from each other, startled by both what was just about to happen and what actually happened. 

“Well,” Max said. “As much as I would love to be stuck in Hawaii forever, we should probably go board the ship.” 

Zoey just nodded her head and swam for shore. 


	5. I Can't Control My Brain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We've got a drunk Zoey and Max today, folks.

“Can I get you guys another round?” the waitress asked. 

Max had thoroughly enjoyed nearly every part of his week with Zoey, but he was fairly certain when they returned back to San Francisco tomorrow the thing he would miss most was the endless bottomless mimosas located within walking distance of his bed. 

“That’d be great!” he said with a smile. 

“Yeah, me too,” Zoey said. “Except, maybe a little lighter on the orange juice this time.” 

“Ditto!” 

“You got it,” she said, returning with their drinks a few minutes later. 

Yesterday Zoey and Max had spent their day fitting in as many of the ship’s activities as they could; they played mini golf, finally gave the waterslides a try, attended a yoga session on the deck, listened to an acapella group’s concert, and played bingo. Max had won big, receiving a Majesty of the Seas commemorative t-shirt; it’d been a size small, however, so he’d given it to Zoey. 

Today, their only plan was to soak up as much sun as they could before they got home and had to go back to real life. Max and Zoey finished their second, third, and then fourth mimosas before heading back to their room to change into their swimsuits and heading to their favorite pool.  It was slightly smaller than the other pools on board, but it had a bar close by and didn’t have a deep end which meant less kids doing cannonballs. They both ordered a bloody mary from the bar before finding a pair of lounging chairs near the pool to settle into. 

Zoey and Max spent most of the early afternoon drinking, laughing, and then drinking more—occasionally spending time in the pool, but mostly kicked back in their chairs. Max went to the bar getting their  _ third? fourth?  _ round of bloody marys. 

He stumbled slightly as he rounded the corner to their chairs, starting to spill his drink; quickly bringing it up to his mouth, Max drank a few big gulps as he steadied Zoey’s in his other hand and somehow managed to not spill a drop. 

As he settled into his chair and handed her the drink, which she quickly started drinking, Max said, “okay, so I think I might be drunk.” 

They’d spent plenty of time enjoying alcohol during the cruise, but most days they’d found a good balance—keeping the perfect level of buzz going throughout the day but never getting too far gone. 

“I’m  _ definitely _ drunk,” Zoey said, but it didn’t stop her from downing the new drink in her hand. She was giggling, which made Max giggle. “Maxwell Richman, I don’t think I’ve ever heard you giggle. Sure, I’ve heard your charming, boisterous laugh plenty. But you’re  _ giggling _ !” 

“I giggle all the time, Zo,” he said defensively. 

“You do not! You do the cute little side grin and chuckle combination or you throw your entire head back with a wide open laugh, but you don’t giggle.” 

“Oh, just shut up and drink your drink.” 

She happily did. 

And Max drank his drink, too, hoping to forget all of the things Zoey’d said about him; if she didn’t stop telling him things she’d noticed and stop talking about his giggling, Max was pretty sure he was going to confess his undying love for her. Or shove his giggly tongue down her throat. Maybe both. 

They both sat there drinking their drinks, chancing glances at the other and trying not to continue laughing. 

After they’d finished the round, Zoey stood up and said, “let’s go on an adventure.” 

“An adventure?” Max asked tentatively. “To where? We’re stuck on a ship.” 

“Yeah, we’re stuck on a giant ship! Something has to be going on!” 

He knew he couldn’t say no, so he jumped up to his feet and started walking towards the bar, where he ordered them a pair of pina coladas. “One more round for the road,” he said with a smile when Zoey stopped next to him. 

“I knew I picked the right man to bring along.” 

Zoey and Max wandered around the ship for awhile, sipping their drinks as they kept an eye out for anything fun. Eventually they stumbled along a ballroom that had some sort of show going on. Once they walked in, they realized it was a makeshift karaoke bar. There was a full band of cruise employees and guests could sign up to sing from a book of music the band knew. 

“Are they seriously doing karaoke at four o’clock in the afternoon?” Zoey said. “I didn’t think anybody did karaoke unless they were already drunk enough to know they wouldn’t remember the embarrassment the next day.” 

“I mean, to be fair, it’s four in the afternoon and I don’t think I’ve been this drunk in  _ years, _ ” Max said. “There’s a good chance I wouldn’t remember it if I took the stage right now. And anyway, they’re pretty good!”

A group of women who looked to be a few years younger than them were singing Wannabe by the Spice Girls while every other woman, and some men, in the room danced along on a small floor set up in front of the stage. 

“You should totally go sing, Zo.” Max said as they finished the song, nudging her. She almost lost her balance, laughing hysterically once she steadied herself. 

“Yeah, right.” 

“C’mon!,” he said. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard you sing.”

“And it would have to take a miraculous, supernatural event for that fact to ever change.” 

The emcee jumped up on stage and said “alright, next we have James with Hotel California by the Eagles!” 

An older man who Max assumed was James made his way to the stage. After he talked with the emcee for a minute, the drummer from the band stood up and James replaced her. James explained that he’d requested to play the drums while he sang, and then counted off the rest of the band. Max nodded his head along, quietly humming along with the music. James was  _ good. _

“How do you know literally every song?” Zoey asked Max, looking up at him with something that looked like admiration in her eyes. 

“How do you not know this song?” he responded. “It’s a  _ CLASSIC _ , Zoey!” 

“I don’t know,” she groaned. “I just don’t… get into music like you do. It’s so personal. So emotional. I feel like I’m eavesdropping on somebody’s innermost thoughts and feelings. And you know I don’t do emotions well!” 

Max hadn’t expected such an honest answer to what he’d thought was a casual conversation; his head was still too hazy to filter his thoughts. 

“Maybe you should try,” he said softly. “Emotions aren’t so bad if you’re sharing them with the right person.” 

James had finished singing Hotel California, and the emcee called the next person up to sing Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison. Instead of continuing down the serious conversation while they were both still drunk, Max couldn’t stop himself from saying, “do you want to go dance, my blue eyed girl?” 

Zoey nodded, so he grabbed her hand and led her to the dance floor where they both started drunkenly twisting and turning—quite badly, Max was sure. When the singer got to the chorus, the entire room (even Zoey, he noticed) started singing “sha la la la la la la la la la la te da.” 

The dance floor erupted into what Max could only describe as a miniature, mild mosh pit; somebody else who was dancing and possibly even more drunk than he and Zoey started running around the floor. He was about to crash into an oblivious Zoey when Max quickly reached out his hand, grabbing Zoey’s and yanking her into his arms before the guy ran into her. 

Even as intoxicated as he was, Max hadn’t thought twice about getting Zoey out of harm’s way, but now that she was in his arms his brain was starting to catch up to the fact that she was in his arms and he didn’t know what to say or do. He couldn’t do or say what he  _ really wanted _ to when she’d just talked about how bad she was with emotions. Zoey laughed and innocently buried her head in his chest. “Oh my god, thank you Max,” she said, looking up at him with a smile. “You saved me!” 

“Any time.” 

He had to force himself to start dancing again—still holding her closer than he maybe should’ve—so he didn’t do something stupid like throw her over his shoulder and take her back to their room to plow into her himself. 


	6. And It Makes Me Feel So Fine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> +one
> 
> this time the physical touch isn't so innocent.

After the karaoke event ended, Zoey and Max found their way back to the pool they’d spent the day at and found a couple of seats. This time, they both sipped on waters before laying down on the reclined chairs. 

Max was starting to doze off when Zoey reached over and place her hand in his. “Thanks for making this week so great,” she said with a smile. Between all of the seemingly innocent moments they’d shared over the week that had made Zoey  _ feel all of the things _ and Max telling her emotions could be alright if only they were shared with the right person, she was trying to show Max how she felt without having to actually say it outright.

He just squeezed her hand in response and gave her a grin without opening his eyes. The next thing Zoey knew, she was startled awake by a football landing a few feet away from their chairs. Max pulled his hand out of Zoey’s and sat up quickly, rubbing his eyes. 

“Fuck, we fell asleep,” Max said, jumping up after he looked at his watch. “It’s almost time for our dinner reservation. We should go get changed!” 

Zoey stretched, standing up and joining Max who was already starting to walk back toward their room. As they wove in and out of the people around them, Max reached back and laced his fingers in Zoey’s and gave her a small smile. By the time she returned it, Max had already turned back to the hallway ahead of them. 

“It’s 6:30pm and I’m somehow both hungover and still a little drunk,” Max said once they got to a quieter hallway near their room. 

“I think we’re officially too old to drink as much as we did today,” Zoey responded. 

They were still walking hand in hand despite being alone in the hallway. Zoey was having trouble keeping up with Max’s long strides, but if they didn’t keep up the pace they were going to be  _ late late _ to their reservation instead of just a normal late so she tried her best. 

When they got to the room Max said, “you can take the bathroom first!” 

Once Zoey shut the door behind them, they both stood shoulder to shoulder in the crowded “entry way” of their room, pulling out acceptable clothes for dinner. Zoey grabbed her dress, a strapless bra and panties, and her travel bathroom bag. 

She quickly brushed through her curls, wild from their day of drinking and dancing, and brushed her teeth—breath wild from an afternoon of drinking followed by a nap. Next Zoey shimmied out of her clothes to get changed before she heard a thud in the other room. “Uh, Max? You okay out there?” 

“I’m fine,” he called. She could see the embarrassment that was clearly on his face despite the closed door between them. “I just need to remember to get one leg all the way through my shorts and safely back on the ground before I lift the other next time.” 

Zoey busted out laughing. She quickly stopped laughing, however, when she got into her bra, panties, and pulled her new dress up only to realize that she couldn’t find a way to reach the zipper while trapped in the tiny bathroom. 

“Think, Zoey, think,” she muttered quietly to herself. “You’re an engineer for fucks sake. You should be able to figure out a damn zipper.” 

“How about you,” Max called, “You alright in there?” 

Apparently she hadn’t been muttering quietly enough. She held the front of her dress tightly to her body and slid the door open, knowing there wasn’t time for any other options. 

“Yeah, I’m fine,” she said. “I just, uh, can’t get my dress zipped.” 

Max just stared at her for what felt like ages—their eyes never leaving the other’s. 

Eventually Zoey broke the silence, “Could you, uh…” she said, gesturing. 

“Oh, yeah, of course!” 

Zoey turned around, holding the dress up with one hand while pulling her hair around one side of her shoulder so it didn’t get stuck with the other. The dress—a tight, strapless dress with a sweetheart neckline that ended just above her knee—was light pink, so light it was almost white, with small flowers in various shades of pink and purple covering it. 

“Is this the dress?” Max asked as he crossed to her. Zoey couldn’t help but shiver when he rested one hand on her hip to steady himself as he reached for the zipper; she was suddenly glad she’d worn cute underwear, the zipper going most of the way down her back.

“The dress?” 

“The one you bought when you returned his suitcase?” Max asked, and Zoey could swear she heard his voice waver when Max said the word  _ his _ . When she didn’t answer, Max continued, “You look beautiful.” 

Zoey couldn’t focus on the question with his hands on her back, each inch of the dress that got zipped sending her closer and closer to sprinting to the other side of the room so she didn’t do something dumb. 

When she felt Max’s hand pull away slightly, she turned around. But he didn’t step back. And suddenly, Zoey was staring at his damn chest hair that escaped the top few unbuttoned buttons of his shirt again. “I don’t want to talk about him,” she said quietly, chancing a look up at Max. 

“Oh, uh, right,” he said, and she could see him swallow hard. Neither of them moved. “You’re right, uhhh, if we get going now we can probably still make our reser-”

Zoey couldn’t take it anymore, she stood on her tippy toes, put one hand on Max’s chest and the other on his jaw, and pulled his lips down to hers. After freezing for just a second, Max gladly kissed her back. 

“Why’d you do that?” he whispered when they pulled apart. 

“Because I felt like it.” 

“Do you feel like this?” he asked, pulling her into another kiss.

Their lips started moving fervently. Max brought his hands to each of Zoey’s sides where there were small triangle cutouts in her dress; the trace of his fingers across her skin sent shivers down Zoey’s spine and back up to the light pressure that remained as their kisses quickly deepened. 

“We…should...” Zoey said between kisses, words muffled into Max’s mouth. Distracted, Zoey forgot to continue her thought.

Max pulled away from Zoey a moment later, her lips immediately feeling naked without his on them. “We should, uh, probably…” he said, swallowing hard. His eyes were a shade darker than they normally were. “Go.” 

There were only centimeters between them, and it made it difficult to focus on anything but Max. His eyes, his lips. And the erection that was filling those centimeters between the rest of their bodies. “To dinner,” Zoey said, nodding slowly.

“Yeah,” he agreed, trailing his hands down Zoey’s body and sending another shiver down her spine before grabbing her hand and lacing his fingers through her’s. They walked slowly to the door, Max opening it and stopping. He stepped to the side as if he were waiting for Zoey to walk through first, but as she moved toward the door he pulled her back and slammed it shut instead. 

In one quick movement, Max lifted Zoey into his arms and moved her against the back of the door. His lips were back on hers and she was kissing him back before her brain even knew what was happening. 

Max seemed to be making it his mission to trace kisses across every inch of Zoey’s body, and she wasn’t complaining. 

He moved away from the door, still holding her in his arms as he moved them back toward the beds. Max sat down on his bed, Zoey straddling him without their lips ever leaving the other’s. Zoey’s dress was riding up, and Max’s hands found a momentary home on her now bare thighs, fingers tracing small circles that would’ve driven Zoey crazy if she weren’t already there. 

The dress was in a heap on the floor seconds after Max’s fingers moved to undo the zipper he’d helped her with just minutes before; for a split second Zoey felt self-conscious, but when she looked down at Max his eyes were filled not only with lust and attraction but also love and admiration. 

One of Max’s hands moved to Zoey’s lower back, leaning her back slightly and supporting her while fingers from his other hand started teasing their way up her inner thigh. Zoey couldn’t help but let out a light laugh, but it quickly caught in her throat as his fingers lingered near the lace of her panties. His lips were moving across Zoey’s jaw and down her neck. 

“I didn’t have you pegged for such a tease, Max,” she said, biting her lip to keep from grinning when he looked backed up at her. 

“Oh, so you been thinking about this happening a lot, huh?” 

“Only just about every minute of every day for the last week. Or month.” 

Hearing Zoey had been thinking about him in that way must’ve been enough to send Max from teasing to thirsting, because he stood, took a few steps to her identical bed, and laid her down before ripping her underwear off. Max knelt in front of her, first finding her clit with his fingers only to be quickly followed by his tongue. Max’s mouth moved expertly, exploring the last part of Zoey he’d yet to discover. 

“God, Max…” Zoey pleaded, one hand wrapped in his curls and the other clenching the thin sheet on her bed. Her words once again inspiring him, Max quickened his pace. “Max, I–” she tried to warn him, but then Max moved back slightly to lightly blow across her only to return to his rightful spot a moment later, doing this thing with his tongue that Zoey could only describe as  _ magical _ . 

After she’d climaxed and regained any semblance of control over her thoughts and body, Zoey looked at Max, who was still kneeling at the edge of the bed and licking her off his lips, and demanded, “get your fucking pants off.” 

Max obliged with a grin, stripping down and wasting no time sliding into her as he lined her stomach, breasts, neck, and eventually lips with hot, quick kisses. He moved deeper into her, slowly at first and then quicker and quicker. “Zoey…” he growled. 

He slowed again, taking Zoey’s face in both of his hands and giving her a long, slow kiss before pumping harder and faster until they both orgasmed. 

“Holy shit,” Max said, still breathing heavily. “That was…” 

“Yeah. It was.” she said, not needing him to continue to know exactly what he meant. He collapsed next and they were both quiet for a few moments as they settled in next to each other; his shoulder was pressed up against the wall while she laid half on him, half on the remainder of the twin sized bed that certainly wasn’t meant for two full grown adults.

“Max?” Zoey said, breaking the silence. Her breath had returned to normal, but she had a feeling Max could still feel how quickly her heart was beating. 

“Hmm?” He pressed his lips into her hairline, just because he could. 

“Can we go find some dinner now? I’m starving.” 


End file.
